Multiplexing control and data information from a user equipment in a physical data channel

ABSTRACT

Methods and apparatus are described for transmitting hybrid automatic repeat request-acknowledgement (HARQ-ACK) bits in a physical uplink shared channel (PUSCH) by a user equipment (UE) in a communication system. A method includes receiving a configuration of a plurality of cells, the plurality of cells being associated with one or more transport blocks; arranging HARQ-ACK bits for the plurality of cells, based on an order of cell indexes and an order of transport block indexes; encoding the arranged HARQ-ACK bits; and transmitting, to a node B, the encoded arranged HARQ-ACK bits in the PUSCH. 2 HARQ-ACK bits for a cell configured with 2 transport blocks are included in the arranged HARQ-ACK bits. The arranged HARQ-ACK bits are encoded by a (32, O) block code in case that a number of the arranged HARQ-ACK bits is 3, O being the number of the arranged HARQ-ACK bits.

PRIORITY

The present application is a Continuation of U.S. Ser. No. 16/506,576,which was filed in the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO)on Jul. 9, 2020, which is a Continuation of U.S. Ser. No. 16/263,770,which was filed in the USPTO on Jan. 31, 2019, issued as U.S. Pat. No.10,506,569 on Dec. 10, 2019, which is a Continuation of U.S. Ser. No.14/305,699, which was filed in the USPTO on Jun. 16, 2014, issued asU.S. Pat. No. 10,200,979 on Feb. 5, 2019, which is a Continuation ofU.S. Ser. No. 13/053,859, which was filed in the USPTO on Mar. 22, 2011,issued as U.S. Pat. No. 9,161,348 on Oct. 13, 2015, and claims priorityunder 35 U.S.C. § 119(e) to U.S. Provisional Application Nos.61/316,134, 61/352,164, and 61/352,623, which were filed in the USPTO onMar. 22, 2010, Jun. 7, 2010, and Jun. 8, 2010, respectively, the entiredisclosure of each of which is incorporated herein by reference.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention

The present invention is directed generally to wireless communicationsystems and, more specifically, to the transmission of controlinformation signals in an uplink of a communication system.

2. Description of the Art

A communication system includes a DownLink (DL) that conveystransmission signals from a Base Station (BS or Node B) to UserEquipments (UEs), and an UpLink (UL) that conveys transmission signalsfrom UEs to the Node B. A UE, also commonly referred to as a terminal ora mobile station, may be fixed or mobile and may be a wireless device, acellular phone, a personal computer device, etc. A Node B is generally afixed station and may also be referred to as a Base Transceiver System(BTS), an access point, or some other equivalent terminology.

More specifically, the UL supports the transmission of data signalscarrying information content, control signals providing informationassociated with the transmission of data signals in the DL, andReference Signals (RSs), which are commonly referred to as pilotsignals. The DL also supports the transmission of data signals, controlsignals, and RSs.

UL data signals are conveyed through a Physical Uplink Shared CHannel(PUSCH) and DL data signals are conveyed through a Physical DownlinkShared CHannel (PDSCH).

In the absence of a PUSCH transmission, a UE conveys Uplink ControlInformation (UCI) through a Physical Uplink Control CHannel (PUCCH).However, when there is a PUSCH transmission, the UE may convey UCItogether with data information through the PUSCH.

DL control signals may be broadcast or sent in a UE-specific nature.Accordingly, UE-specific control channels can be used, among otherpurposes, to provide UEs with Scheduling Assignments (SAs) for PDSCHreception (DL SAs) or PUSCH transmission (UL SAs). The SAs aretransmitted from the Node B to respective UEs using Downlink ControlInformation (DCI) formats through respective Physical Downlink ControlCHannels (PDCCHs).

The UCI includes ACKnowledgment (ACK) information associated with theuse of a Hybrid Automatic Repeat reQuest (HARQ) process. The HARQ-ACKinformation is sent in response to the reception of Transport Blocks(TBs) by the UE, conveyed by the PDSCH.

The UCI may also include a Channel Quality Indicator (CQI), a PrecodingMatrix Indicator (PMI), or a Rank Indicator (RI), which may be jointlyreferred to as Channel State Information (CSI). The CQI provides theNode B with a measure of the Signal to Interference and Noise Ratio(SINR) the UE experiences over sub-bands or over the whole operating DLBandWidth (BW). This measure is typically in the form of the highestModulation and Coding Scheme (MCS) for which a predetermined BLock ErrorRate (BLER) can be achieved for the transmission of TBs. The MCSrepresents the product of the modulation order (number of data bits permodulation symbol) and of the coding rate applied to the transmission ofdata information. The PMI/RI informs the Node B how to combine thesignal transmission to the UE from multiple Node B antennas using aMultiple-Input Multiple-Output (MIMO) principle.

FIG. 1 illustrates a conventional PUSCH transmission structure.

Referring to FIG. 1, for simplicity, the Transmission Time Interval(TTI) is one sub-frame 110, which includes two slots. Each slot 120includes N_(symb) ^(UL) symbols used for the transmission of datasignals, UCI signals, or RSs. Each symbol 130 includes a Cyclic Prefix(CP) to mitigate interference due to channel propagation effects. ThePUSCH transmission in one slot 120 may be either at a same or differentBW as the PUSCH transmission in the other slot.

Some symbols in each slot are used to a transmit RS 140, which enableschannel estimation and coherent demodulation of the received data and/orUCI signals.

The transmission BW includes frequency resource units that will bereferred to herein as Physical Resource Blocks (PRBs). Each PRB includesN_(sc) ^(RB) sub-carriers, or Resource Elements (REs), and a UE isallocated M_(PUSCH) PRBs 150 for a total of M_(sc)^(PUSCH)=M_(PUSCH)·N_(sc) ^(RB) REs for the PUSCH transmission BW.

The last sub-frame symbol is used for transmitting a Sounding RS (SRS)160 from one or more UEs. The SRS provides the Node B with a CQIestimate for the UL channel medium for the respective UE. The SRStransmission parameters are semi-statically configured by the Node B toeach UE through higher layer signaling such as, for example, RadioResource Control (RRC) signaling.

In FIG. 1, the number of sub-frame symbols available for datatransmission is N_(symb) ^(PUSCH)=2·(N_(symb) ^(UL)−1)−N_(SRS), whereN_(SRS)=1 if the last sub-frame symbol is used for SRS transmission andN_(SRS)=otherwise.

FIG. 2 illustrates a conventional transmitter for transmitting data,CSI, and HARQ-ACK signals in a PUSCH.

Referring to FIG. 2, coded CSI bits 205 and coded data bits 210 aremultiplexed by multiplexer 220. HARQ-ACK bits are then inserted bypuncturing data bits and/or CSI bits by puncturing unit 230. TheDiscrete Fourier Transform (DFT) is then performed by the DFT unit 240.REs are then selected by sub-carrier mapping by the sub-carrier mappingunit 250 corresponding to the PUSCH transmission BW from controller 255.Inverse Fast Fourier Transform (IFFT) is performed by an IFFT unit 260,CP insertion is performed by a CP insertion unit 270, and time windowingis performed by filter 280, thereby generating a transmitted signal 290.

The PUSCH transmission is assumed to be over clusters of contiguous REsin accordance to the DFT Spread Orthogonal Frequency Division MultipleAccess (DFT-S-OFDMA) method for signal transmission over one cluster295A (also known as Single-Carrier Frequency Division Multiple Access(SC-FDMA)), or over multiple non-contiguous clusters 295B.

FIG. 3 illustrates a conventional receiver for receiving a transmissionsignal as illustrated in FIG. 2.

Referring to FIG. 3, an antenna receives a Radio-Frequency (RF) analogsignal and after further processing units (such as filters, amplifiers,frequency down-converters, and analog-to-digital converters) which arenot shown for brevity, the received digital signal 310 is filtered byfilter 320 and the CP is removed by CP removal unit 330. Subsequently,the receiver unit applies a Fast Fourier Transform (FFT) by an FFT unit340, selects the REs used by the transmitter by sub-carrier de-mappingby a sub-carrier demapping unit 350 under a control of controller 355.Thereafter, an Inverse DFT (IDFT) unit 360 applies IDFT, an extractionunit 370 extracts the HARQ-ACK bits, and a de-multiplexing unit 380demultiplexes the data bits 390 and CSI bits 395.

The RS transmission is assumed to be through a Constant Amplitude ZeroAuto-Correlation (CAZAC) sequence. An example of CAZAC sequences isshown in Equation (1).

$\begin{matrix}{{c_{k}(n)} = {\exp \left\lbrack {\frac{j\; 2\; \pi \; k}{L}\left( {n + {n\frac{n + 1}{2}}} \right)} \right\rbrack}} & (1)\end{matrix}$

In Equation (1), L is a length of the CAZAC sequence, n is an index ofan element of the sequence n={0, 1, . . . , L−1}, and k is an index ofthe sequence. If L is a prime integer, there are L−1 distinct sequencesdefined as k ranges in {0, 1, . . . L−1}.

For an even number of REs, CAZAC-based sequences with even length can begenerated, e.g., by truncating or extending a CAZAC sequence.

Orthogonal multiplexing of CAZAC sequences can be achieved by applyingdifferent Cyclic Shifts (CSs) to the same CAZAC sequence.

For HARQ-ACK or RI transmission in the PUSCH, a UE determines therespective number of coded symbols Q′ as shown in Equation (2).

$\begin{matrix}{Q^{\prime} = {\min \left( {\left\lceil \frac{O \cdot \beta_{offset}^{PUSCH}}{Q_{m} \cdot R} \right\rceil,{4 \cdot M_{sc}^{PUSCH}}} \right)}} & (2)\end{matrix}$

In Equation (2), 0 is a number of HARQ-ACK information bits or RIinformation bits, β_(offset) ^(PUSCH) is informed to the UE through RRCsignaling, Q_(m) is a number of data bits per modulation symbol(Q_(m)=2, 4, 6 for QPSK, QAM16, QAM64, respectively), R is a data coderate of an initial PUSCH transmission for the same TB, M_(sc) ^(PUSCH)is a PUSCH transmission BW in a current sub-frame, and ┌ ┐ indicates aceiling operation that rounds a number to its next integer.

The data code rate R is defined as shown in Equation (3).

$\begin{matrix}{R = {\left( {\sum\limits_{r = 0}^{C - 1}K_{r}} \right)/\left( {Q_{m} \cdot M_{sc}^{{PUSCH}\text{-}{initial}} \cdot N_{symb}^{{PUSCH}\text{-}{initial}}} \right)}} & (3)\end{matrix}$

In Equation (3), C is a total number of data code blocks and K_(r) is anumber of bits for data code block number r. The maximum number ofHARQ-ACK or RI REs is limited to the REs of 4 DFT-S-OFDM symbols(4·M_(sc) ^(PUSCH)).

When the UE receives one TB, the HARQ-ACK includes 1 bit that is encodedas a binary ‘1’, if the TB is correctly received (positiveacknowledgement or ACK), or as a binary ‘0’, if the TB is incorrectlyreceived (negative acknowledgment or NACK).

When the UE receives two TBs, the HARQ-ACK includes 2 bits [o₀ ^(ACK)o₁^(ACK)] with o₀ ^(ACK) for TB 0 and o₁ ^(ACK) for TB 1. The encoding forthe HARQ-ACK bits is given in Table 1 below, where o₂ ^(ACK)=(o₀^(ACK)+o₁ ^(ACK))mod 2 to provide a (3, 2) simplex code for the 2-bitHARQ-ACK transmission.

TABLE 1 Encoding for 1-bit and 2-bits of HARQ-ACK Encoded Encoded Q_(m)HARQ-ACK—1 bit HARQ-ACK—2 bits 2 [o₀ ^(ACK) y] [o₀ ^(ACK) o₁ ^(ACK) o₂^(ACK) o₀ ^(ACK) o₁ ^(ACK) o₂ ^(ACK)] 4 [o₀ ^(ACK) y x x] [o₀ ^(ACK) o₁^(ACK) x x o₂ ^(ACK) o₀ ^(ACK) x x o₁ ^(ACK) o₂ ^(ACK) x x] 6 [o₀ ^(ACK)y x x x x] [o₀ ^(ACK) o₁ ^(ACK) x x x x o₂ ^(ACK) o₀ ^(ACK) x x x x o₁^(ACK) o₂ ^(ACK) x x x x]

For CQI/PMI multiplexing in a PUSCH, a UE determines a respective numberof coded symbols Q′ as shown in Equation (4).

$\begin{matrix}{Q^{\prime} = {\min \left( {\left\lceil \frac{\left( {O + L} \right) \cdot \beta_{offset}^{PUSCH}}{Q_{m} \cdot R} \right\rceil,{{M_{sc}^{PUSCH} \cdot N_{symb}^{PUSCH}} - \frac{Q_{RJ}}{Q_{m}}}} \right)}} & (4)\end{matrix}$

In Equation (4), 0 is a number of CQI/PMI information bits, L is anumber of CRC bits given by

$L = \left\{ {\begin{matrix}0 & {O \leq 11} \\8 & {otherwise}\end{matrix},} \right.$

and Q_(CQI)=Q_(m)·Q′. If RI is not transmitted, then Q_(RI)=0.

For CQI/PMI channel coding, convolutional coding is used, if O>11 bits,and (32, O) Reed-Mueller (RM) block coding is used, if O≤11 bits. Thecode words of the (32, O) block code are a linear combination of the 11basis sequences denoted by M_(i,n) and given in Table 2 below. Denotingthe input sequence by o₀, o₁, o₂, . . . o_(O−1) and the encoded CQI/PMIblock by b₀, b₁, b₂, b₃, . . . , b_(B−1), B=32, it is

${b_{i} = {\sum\limits_{n = 0}^{O - 1}{\left( {o_{n} \cdot M_{i,n}} \right)\mspace{11mu} {mod}\mspace{11mu} 2}}},$

i=0, 1, 2, . . . , B−1.

The output sequence q₀, q₁, q₂, q₃, . . . , q_(Q) _(CQI) ⁻¹ is obtainedby circular repetition of the encoded CQI/PMI block asq_(i)=b_((i mod B)), i=0, 1, 2, . . . , Q_(CQI)−1.

TABLE 2 Basis sequences for (32, O) code. i M_(i, 0) M_(i, 1) M_(i, 2)M_(i, 3) M_(i, 4) M_(i, 5) M_(i, 6) M_(i, 7) M_(i, 8) M_(i, 9) M_(i, 10)0 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 2 1 0 0 1 0 0 1 0 1 1 13 1 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 1 4 1 1 1 1 0 0 0 1 0 0 1 5 1 1 0 0 1 0 1 1 1 0 16 1 0 1 0 1 0 1 0 1 1 1 7 1 0 0 1 1 0 0 1 1 0 1 8 1 1 0 1 1 0 0 1 0 1 19 1 0 1 1 1 0 1 0 0 1 1 10 1 0 1 0 0 1 1 1 0 1 1 11 1 1 1 0 0 1 1 0 1 01 12 1 0 0 1 0 1 0 1 1 1 1 13 1 1 0 1 0 1 0 1 0 1 1 14 1 0 0 0 1 1 0 1 00 1 15 1 1 0 0 1 1 1 1 0 1 1 16 1 1 1 0 1 1 1 0 0 1 0 17 1 0 0 1 1 1 0 01 0 0 18 1 1 0 1 1 1 1 1 0 0 0 19 1 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 20 1 0 1 0 0 0 10 0 0 1 21 1 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 22 1 0 0 0 1 0 0 1 1 0 1 23 1 1 1 0 1 00 0 1 1 1 24 1 1 1 1 1 0 1 1 1 1 0 25 1 1 0 0 0 1 1 1 0 0 1 26 1 0 1 1 01 0 0 1 1 0 27 1 1 1 1 0 1 0 1 1 1 0 28 1 0 1 0 1 1 1 0 1 0 0 29 1 0 1 11 1 1 1 1 0 0 30 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 31 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

Among the UCI, HARQ-ACK has the highest reliability requirements and therespective REs are located next to the RS in each slot in order toobtain the most accurate channel estimate for their demodulation. Whenthere is no CQI/PMI transmission, RI is placed at the symbols after theHARQ-ACK, while CQI/PMI transmission is uniformly multiplexed throughoutthe sub-frame.

FIG. 4 illustrates conventional UCI multiplexing in a PUSCH sub-frame.

Referring to FIG. 4, the HARQ-ACK bits 410 are placed next to the RS 420in each slot of the PUSCH sub-frame. The CQI/PMI bits 430 aremultiplexed across all DFT-S-OFDM symbols and the remaining of thesub-frame carries transmission of data bits 440. As the multiplexing isprior to the DFT, a virtual frequency dimension is used for the UCIplacement.

For a UE transmitter having more than one antenna, TransmissionDiversity (TxD) can enhance the reliability of the received signal byproviding spatial diversity.

An example TxD method is Space Time Block Coding (STBC). With STBC, ifthe first antenna transmits the symbols d₀,d₁, the second antennatransmits the symbols d₁*−d₀*, where d* is the complex conjugate of d.Denoting the channel estimate for the signal received at a referenceNode B antenna and transmitted from the j^(th) UE antenna by h_(j),j=0.2, and denoting the signal received at the Node B antenna in thek^(th) DFT-S-OFDM symbol by y_(k), k=1.2, the decision for a pair ofSTBC symbols [{circumflex over (d)}_(k),{circumflex over (d)}_(k+1)] isaccording to [{circumflex over (d)}_(k),{circumflex over(d)}_(k+1)*]^(T)=H^(H)[y_(k),y_(k+1)*], where [ ]^(T) denotes thetranspose of a vector and

$H^{H} = {\begin{bmatrix}h_{1}^{*} & {- h_{2}} \\h_{2}^{*} & h_{1}\end{bmatrix}/{\left( {{h_{1}}^{2} + {h_{2}}^{2}} \right).}}$

In order to increase the supportable data rates, aggregation of multipleComponent Carriers (CCs) is considered in both the DL and the UL toprovide higher operating BWs. For example, to support communication over60 MHz, aggregation of three 20 MHz CCs can be used.

FIG. 5 illustrates the concept of conventional Carrier Aggregation (CA).

Referring to FIG. 5, an operating DL BW of 60 MHz 510 is constructed bythe aggregation of 3 (contiguous, for simplicity) DL CCs 521, 522, and523, each having a BW of 20 MHz. Similarly, an operating UL BW of 60 MHz530 is constructed by the aggregation of 3 UL CCs 541, 542, and 543,each having a BW of 20 MHz. For simplicity, in the example illustratedin FIG. 5, each of DL CCs 521, 522, and 523 is assumed to be uniquelymapped to a UL CC (symmetric CA), but it is also possible for more than1 DL CC to be mapped to a single UL CC or for more than 1 UL CC to bemapped to a single DL CC (asymmetric CA, not shown for brevity). Thelink between DL CCs and UL CCs is typically UE-specific.

The Node B configures CCs to a UE using RRC signaling. Assumingtransmission of different TBs in each of the multiple DL CCs 521, 522,and 523, multiple HARQ-ACK bits will be transmitted in the UL.

For simultaneous HARQ-ACK and PUSCH transmissions, the direct extensionof the conventional operation is to include the HARQ-ACK bits for theTBs received in a DL CC in the PUSCH of its linked UL CC. However, inpractice, not all UL CCs may have PUSCH transmissions in the samesub-frame. Therefore, any design supporting transmission in the PUSCH ofHARQ-ACK bits corresponding to reception of TBs in multiple DL CCsshould consider the case of only a single PUSCH. This also applies forany UCI type (not just HARQ-ACK). The PUCCH transmission is assumed tobe in a single UL CC, which will be referred to as UL Primary CC.

TxD should be supported for UCI transmission in the PUSCH (if the UE hasmultiple transmitter antennas), particularly for the HARQ-ACK thatrequires high reliability that may be difficult to achieve withoutsubstantially increasing the required PUSCH resources particularly forlarge HARQ-ACK payloads (such as, for example, 10 HARQ-ACK bitscorresponding to reception of TBs in 5 DL CCs with 2 TBs per DL CC).

Therefore, there is a need to support transmission of HARQ-ACKinformation in the PUSCH in response to the reception of at least one TBfrom a UE configured with CA in the DL of a communication system.

There is another need to dimension the PUSCH resources used for HARQ-ACKmultiplexing depending on the HARQ-ACK coding method in order to improvethe HARQ-ACK reception reliability.

S There is another need to select the PUSCH for the transmission of UCI,for multiple simultaneous PUSCH transmissions.

There is another need to support TxD for the HARQ-ACK transmission inthe PUSCH.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Accordingly, the present invention has been designed to solve at leastthe aforementioned limitations and problems in the prior art.

An aspect of the present invention is to provide methods and apparatusfor a UE to transmit ACK signals associated with a HARQ process, i.e.,HARQ-ACK signals, in response to the reception of TBs, when the UE isconfigured from the Node B with multiple CCs in the DL of acommunication system, thereby improving the reception reliability ofHARQ-ACK information encoded in the PUSCH, to select a PUSCH amongmultiple PUSCHs for UCI multiplexing, and to apply HARQ-ACK transmissiondiversity in the PUSCH.

In accordance with an aspect of the present invention a method isprovided for transmitting hybrid automatic repeatrequest-acknowledgement (HARQ-ACK) bits by a user equipment (UE) in acommunication system supporting carrier aggregation. The method includesreceiving a configuration of a plurality of cells by higher layersignaling; identifying a number of transport blocks for a cell based onthe configuration of a plurality of cells; identifying one HARQ-ACKoffset; concatenating HARQ-ACK bits for the plurality of cells based onan order of a cell index for each of the plurality of cells and a numberof transport blocks for each of the plurality of cells; identifying anumber of coded symbols for the concatenated HARQ-ACK bits based on anumber of the concatenated HARQ-ACK bits and one HARQ-ACK offset,wherein the one HARQ-ACK offset corresponds to the number of theconcatenated HARQ-ACK bits; and transmitting, to a base station, thenumber of coded symbols for the concatenated HARQ-ACK bits on onephysical uplink shared channel (PUSCH) of multiple PUSCHs, in case thatthe multiple PUSCHs exist in a slot. In case that a cell is configuredwith up to 2 transport blocks, 2 HARQ-ACK bits for the cell are includedin the number of the concatenated HARQ-ACK bits, and in case that a cellis configured with up to 1 transport block, 1 HARQ-ACK bit for the cellis included in the number of the concatenated HARQ-ACK bits. In casethat number of the concatenated HARQ-ACK bits is 3, the concatenatedHARQ-ACK bits are encoded by a (32, O) block code, where the O is thenumber of the concatenated HARQ-ACK bits.

In accordance with another aspect of the present invention a method isprovided for receiving hybrid automatic repeat request-acknowledgement(HARQ-ACK) bits by a base station in a communication system supportingcarrier aggregation. The method includes transmitting a configuration ofa plurality of cells by higher layer signaling; and receiving, from auser equipment (UE), a number of coded symbols for concatenated HARQ-ACKbits on one physical uplink shared channel (PUSCH) of multiple PUSCHs,in case that the multiple PUSCHs exist in a slot. The number of codedsymbols is identified based on a number of the concatenated HARQ-ACKbits and one HARQ-ACK offset, and the one HARQ-ACK offset corresponds tothe number of the concatenated HARQ-ACK bits. The concatenated HARQ-ACKbits for the plurality of cells are concatenated based on an order of acell index for each of the plurality of cells and a number of transportblocks for each of the plurality of cells. The number of transportblocks for each of the plurality of cells is identified based on theconfiguration of the plurality of cells. In case that a cell isconfigured with up to 2 transport blocks, 2 HARQ-ACK bits for the cellare included in the number of the concatenated HARQ-ACK bits, and incase that a cell is configured with up to 1 transport block, 1 HARQ-ACKbit for the cell is included in the number of the concatenated HARQ-ACKbits. In case that number of the concatenated HARQ-ACK bits is 3, theconcatenated HARQ-ACK bits are encoded by a (32, O) block code, wherethe O is the number of the concatenated HARQ-ACK bits.

In accordance with another aspect of the present invention a userequipment (UE) is provided for transmitting hybrid automatic repeatrequest-acknowledgement (HARQ-ACK) bits in a communication systemsupporting carrier aggregation. The UE includes at least onetransceiver; and at least one processor. The at least one processor isconfigured to control the at least one transceiver to receive aconfiguration of a plurality of cells by higher layer signaling,identify a number of transport blocks for a cell based on theconfiguration of a plurality of cells, identify one HARQ-ACK offset,concatenate HARQ-ACK bits for the plurality of cells based on an orderof a cell index for each of the plurality of cells and a number oftransport blocks for each of the plurality of cells, identify a numberof coded symbols for the concatenated HARQ-ACK bits based on a number ofthe concatenated HARQ-ACK bits and one HARQ-ACK offset, wherein the oneHARQ-ACK offset corresponds to the number of the concatenated HARQ-ACKbits, and control the at least one transceiver to transmit, to a basestation, the number of coded symbols for the concatenated HARQ-ACK bitson one physical uplink shared channel (PUSCH) of multiple PUSCHs, incase that the multiple PUSCHs exist in a slot. In case that a cell isconfigured with up to 2 transport blocks, 2 HARQ-ACK bits for the cellare included in the number of the concatenated HARQ-ACK bits, and incase that a cell is configured with up to 1 transport block, 1 HARQ-ACKbit for the cell is included in the number of the concatenated HARQ-ACKbits. In case that number of the concatenated HARQ-ACK bits is 3, theconcatenated HARQ-ACK bits are encoded by a (32, O) block code, whereinthe O is the number of the concatenated HARQ-ACK bits.

In accordance with another aspect of the present invention a basestation is provided for receiving hybrid automatic repeatrequest-acknowledgement (HARQ-ACK) bits in a communication systemsupporting carrier aggregation. The base station includes at least onetransceiver; and at least one processor. The at least one processor isconfigured to control the at least one transceiver to transmit aconfiguration of a plurality of cells by higher layer signaling, andcontrol the at least one transceiver to receive, from a user equipment(UE), a number of coded symbols for concatenated HARQ-ACK bits on onephysical uplink shared channel (PUSCH) of multiple PUSCHs, in case thatthe multiple PUSCHs exist in a slot. The number of coded symbols isidentified based on a number of the concatenated HARQ-ACK bits and oneHARQ-ACK offset, and the one HARQ-ACK offset corresponds to the numberof the concatenated HARQ-ACK bits. The concatenated HARQ-ACK bits forthe plurality of cells are concatenated based on an order of a cellindex for each of the plurality of cells and a number of transportblocks for each of the plurality of cells. The number of transportblocks for each of the plurality of cells is identified based on theconfiguration of a plurality of cells. In case that a cell is configuredwith up to 2 transport blocks, 2 HARQ-ACK bits for the cell are includedin the number of the concatenated HARQ-ACK bits, and in case that a cellis configured with up to 1 transport block, 1 HARQ-ACK bit for the cellis included in the number of the concatenated HARQ-ACK bits. In casethat number of the concatenated HARQ-ACK bits is 3, the concatenatedHARQ-ACK bits are encoded by a (32, O) block code, where the O is thenumber of the concatenated HARQ-ACK bits.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The above and other aspects, features, and advantages of the presentinvention will be more apparent from the following detailed descriptiontaken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating a conventional PUSCH sub-framestructure;

FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating a conventional transmitter fortransmitting data, CSI, and HARQ-ACK signals in a PUSCH;

FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating a conventional receiver forreceiving data, CSI, and HARQ-ACK signals in the PUSCH;

FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating conventional multiplexing of UCI anddata in a PUSCH;

FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating the concept of conventional carrieraggregation;

FIG. 6 illustrates the generation of HARQ-ACK acknowledgement bitsaccording to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 7 illustrates HARQ-ACK information bits according to an embodimentof the present invention;

FIG. 8 illustrates transmissions of encoded HARQ-ACK bits from a UEusing QPSK modulation with one repetition and with two repetitions of ablock code according to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 9 illustrates using different frequencies for transmission in eachsub-frame slot of encoded HARQ-ACK bits from a UE for two repetitions ofa block code according to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 10 is a flowchart illustrating a method of multiplexing differentHARQ-ACK (or RI) payloads in a PUSCH according to an embodiment of thepresent invention;

FIG. 11 illustrates a selection of a single PUSCH, among multiple PUSCH,for UCI multiplexing according to a metric quantified by the PUSCH MCS,according to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 12 illustrates an inclusion of a “UCI_Multiplexing” IE in a DCIformat scheduling a PUSCH transmission, according to an embodiment ofthe present invention; and

FIG. 13 is a diagram illustrates STBC of HARQ-ACK transmission in aPUSCH according to an embodiment of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS OF THE INVENTION

Various embodiments of the present invention will now be described morefully hereinafter with reference to the accompanying drawings. Thispresent invention may, however, be embodied in many different forms andshould not be construed as limited to the embodiments set forth herein.Rather, these embodiments are provided so that this disclosure will bethorough and complete and will fully convey the scope of the presentinvention to those skilled in the art.

Additionally, although the embodiments of the present invention will bedescribed below with reference to a Frequency Division Duplex (FDD)communication system using DFT-spread OFDM transmission, they also areapplicable to a Time Division duplex (TDD) communication system and toall Frequency Division Multiplexing (FDM) transmissions in general andto Single-Carrier Frequency Division Multiple Access (SC-FDMA) and OFDMin particular.

In accordance with an embodiment of the present invention HARQ-ACKmultiplexing is performed in a single PUSCH in response to the receptionof at least one TB from a UE configured with multiple DL CCs (unlessexplicitly stated otherwise).

All O>2 HARQ-ACK bits are assumed to be jointly coded using a singlecoding method instead of having multiple parallel transmissions of 1 or2 HARQ-ACK bits, for each respective DL CC, in separate resources. It isassumed that the coding of O HARQ-ACK bits uses the (32, O) block codepreviously described for the CQI/PMI transmission (the basis sequencesmay or may not be the same as the ones in Table 2). This allows thetransmission of up to 10 HARQ-ACK bits (considering only the first 10basis sequences). When HARQ-ACK spatial domain bundling is used, eachrespective HARQ-ACK bit corresponds to the reception of 2 TBs (with anACK being transmitted if both TBs are correctly received and a NACKbeing transmitted otherwise).

As some Downlink Control Information (DCI) formats which inform a UE ofrespective PDSCH transmissions in respective DL CCs may be incorrectlyreceived (or missed) by the UE, in accordance with an embodiment of thepresent invention there are two possible approaches to ensure that aNode B detects a number of HARQ-ACK bits equal to the number of HARQ-ACKbits the UE transmits and that the Node B and the UE have the sameunderstanding for the placement of the HARQ-ACK bits in the respectivecodeword of the RM code.

In the first approach, a UE uses the (32, O) RM block code and feedsback a number of HARQ-ACK bits determined from the number of itsconfigured DL CCs and the respective configured Transmission Mode (TM).The TM for each DL CC is assigned to the UE through RRC signaling fromthe Node B and determines whether the UE may receive a maximum of 1 TBor 2 TBs in the DL CC. If the UE is configured in a DL CC a TMsupporting 2 TBs, the UE transmits 2 HARQ-ACK bits for that DL CCregardless of the number of TBs (0, 1, or 2) the UE actually receives inthe respective DL sub-frame. If the UE is configured a TM supporting 2TBs in a DL CC, then if the receptive PDSCH conveyed 1 TB (instead of 2TBs) the UE indicates an incorrect reception for the second TB (NACK) inthe respective position of the HARQ-ACK codeword. If the respectivePDSCH is not received, the UE indicates incorrect reception for 2 TBs (2NACKs) in the respective positions of the HARQ-ACK codeword.

If the UE has m, DL CCs and there are N₁≤M₁ DL CCs for which the PDSCHmay convey 2 TBs (UE configured a TM supporting 2 TBs), the number ofHARQ-ACK bits in the PUSCH is computed as O=2N₁+(M₁−N₁)=M₁+N₁. If the UEhas only M₁=2 DL CCs and there are N₁=0 DL CCs with configured TMenabling reception of a maximum of 2 TBs, then the UE transmits O=2HARQ-ACK bits using the previously described (3, 2) simplex code. In allother cases, a UE with at least 2 DL CCs configured, has a minimumnumber of O=3 HARQ-ACK bits and it uses the (32, O) RM block code toconvey them in the PUSCH.

FIG. 6 illustrates the first approach for HARQ-ACK multiplexing in aPUSCH according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 6, a UE has 3 DL CCs, DL CC1 610, DL CC2 612, and DLCC3 614. In DL CC1 610 the UE is configured TM1 supporting a maximum of2 TBs, in DL CC2 612 the UE is configured TM2 supporting a maximum of 1TB, and in DL CC3 614 the UE is configured TM3 supporting a maximum of 2TBs. The UE always transmits a 2-bit HARQ-ACK 620 corresponding to DL CC610, a 1-bit HARQ-ACK 622 corresponding to DL CC2 612, and a 2-bitHARQ-ACK 624 corresponding to DL CC3 614. In all cases, the HARQ-ACKtransmission occurs regardless of whether the UE receives PDSCH in thecorresponding DL CC. Therefore, the UE always transmits and the Node Balways receives 5 HARQ-ACK bits for HARQ-ACK multiplexing in the PUSCH.

In the second approach, each DCI format scheduling PUSCH transmissionincludes a Downlink Assignment Indicator (DAI) Information Element (IE).The DAI IE is a bit-map indicating the DL CCs with PDSCH transmission.For example, assuming that a UE can have a maximum of 5 DL CCs, the DAIIE consists of 5 bits. Using the DAI IE, the number of HARQ-ACK bits isnot always the maximum one corresponding to the configured DL CCs.Various methods to reduce the number of DAI IE bits may also apply. Forexample, the UE may assume that it always has PDSCH transmission in a DLCC, in which case the bit-map does not address that DL CC. The number ofHARQ-ACK bits transmitted by the UE in the PUSCH depends on the maximumnumber of TBs the PDSCH may convey in a DL CC indicated by the DAI IE.

If the DAI IE indicates M₂ DL CCs (the bit-map has M₂ bits with value 1indicating a DL CC) and, in these M₂ DL CC, there are N₂≤M₂ DL CCs forwhich the PDSCH may convey 2 TBs, the number of HARQ-ACK bits isO=2N₂+(M₂−N₂)=M₂+N₂.

Similar to the first approach, if the DAI IE indicates only M₂=1 DL CCor M₂=2 DL CCs with both having configured TM associated with thereception of 1 TB (N₂=0), then the UE transmits O=1 or O=2 HARQ-ACK bitsusing the respective one of the two previously described methods(repetition code or (3, 2) simplex code). In all other cases, a UE has aminimum number of O=3 HARQ-ACK bits and, when it conveys them in thePUSCH, it uses the (32, O) RM block code.

FIG. 7 illustrates HARQ-ACK information bits according to an embodimentof the present invention, i.e., an embodiment of the second approach.

Referring to FIG. 7, a reference UE has 3 DL CCs, DL CC1 720, DL CC2722, and DL CC3 724. In DL CC1 720 the UE is configured TM1 supporting amaximum of 2 TBs, in DL CC2 722 the UE is configured TM2 supporting amaximum of 1 TB, and in DL CC3 724 the UE is configured TM3 supporting amaximum of 2 TBs. The DAI IE 710 in the DCI format for a PUSCHtransmission indicates PDSCH transmission in DL CC1 and DL CC2. The UEtransmits 2 HARQ-ACK bits 730 for DL CC1 720 and 1 HARQ-ACK bit 732 forDL CC2 722. This HARQ-ACK transmission occurs regardless of whether theUE actually receives the PDSCH in DL CC1 or DL CC2 (a PDSCH is missedwhen the respective DL SA is missed).

The ordering of the HARQ-ACK bits in the block code is determined by theordering of the respective DL CCs. The ordering of the DL CCs can beconfigured through RRC signaling by the Node B or be implicitlydetermined, e.g., from the order of carrier frequencies for the DL CCs.That is, the DL CCs may be ordered in ascending carrier frequency.

Once the UE determines the number (of HARQ-ACK bits to transmit, itapplies the (32, O) block code as shown in Table 2.

In accordance with an embodiment of the present invention repetitions ofthe encoded HARQ-ACK bits may be applied in order to achieve therequired reliability. For example, for QPSK modulation, the 32 outputbits can be mapped to 16 modulated symbols, which are distributed inblocks of 4 REs in the 4 DFT-S-OFDM symbols around the 2 RS persub-frame. When multiple repetitions of the encoded HARQ-ACK bits areapplied, the REs used for HARQ-ACK transmission are in multiples of 16.

FIG. 8 illustrates a transmission of encoded HARQ-ACK bits for QPSKmodulation with one repetition and with two repetitions of the (32, O)block code. For simplicity, transmission of other UCI types is notconsidered.

Referring to FIG. 8, the PUSCH includes HARQ-ACK REs for a firstrepetition 810A, HARQ-ACK REs for a second repetition 810B, RS REs 820,and data REs 830. For one repetition, the HARQ-ACK REs are mapped aroundthe RS in groups of 4 REs, 840A and 840B. For two repetitions, theHARQ-ACK REs are mapped around the RS in groups of 4 REs, 850A and 850Bfor the first repetition and again in groups of 4 REs 860A and 860B forthe second repetition.

For multiple repetitions, different frequencies can be used for thetransmission in each slot in order to enhance the frequency diversityand interference diversity of each repetition, as is illustrated in FIG.9 for 2 repetitions.

FIG. 9 illustrates using different frequencies for transmission in eachsub-frame slot of encoded HARQ-ACK bits from a UE for two repetitions ofa block code according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 9, the PUSCH sub-frame includes HARQ-ACK REs for afirst repetition 910A, HARQ-ACK REs for a second repetition 910B, RS REs920, and data REs 930. The HARQ-ACK REs are mapped around the RS ingroups of 4 REs, where the location of the REs in the first slot for thefirst repetition 940A and for the second repetition 940B is switched inthe second slot for the first repetition 950A and for the secondrepetition 950B.

For HARQ-ACK transmission in the PUSCH, a UE determines the respectivenumber of coded symbols Q′ (nominal coding rate) as shown in Equation(5).

$\begin{matrix}{Q^{\prime} = {\min \left( {\left\lceil \frac{O \cdot {\beta_{offset}^{PUSCH}(O)}}{Q_{m} \cdot R} \right\rceil,{4 \cdot M_{sc}^{PUSCH}}} \right)}} & (5)\end{matrix}$

Because the HARQ-ACK information payload is fixed at O bits, the numberof coded symbols Q′ determines the nominal coding rate of the HARQ-ACKtransmissions, which is inversely proportional to the MCS of the datatransmission, as this is determined by Q_(m)·R.

Alternatively, in order to simplify the encoding operation at the UEtransmitter and the decoding operation at the Node B receiver and toavoid the puncturing losses associated with the coding rate increase fora block code with shortened length (if ┌O·β_(offset)^(PUSCH)(O)/(Q_(m)·R)┌<32), an integer number of repetitions for the(32, O) block code may only be defined if the nominal coding rate islarger than a predetermined maximum coding rate. Then, the UE determinesthe number of repetitions R for the encoded UCI (HARQ-ACK or RI) bits asshown in Equation (6).

$\begin{matrix}{R = {{\min \left( {\left\lceil \frac{O \cdot {\beta_{offset}^{PUSCH}(O)}}{R \cdot 32} \right\rceil,\frac{4 \cdot M_{sc}^{PUSCH} \cdot Q_{m}}{32}} \right)} = {\min \left( {\left\lceil \frac{O \cdot {\beta_{offset}^{PUSCH}(O)}}{32 \cdot R} \right\rceil,\frac{M_{sc}^{PUSCH} \cdot Q_{m}}{8}} \right)}}} & (6)\end{matrix}$

In Equation (6), β_(offset) ^(PUSCH)(O) depends on a number oftransmitted HARQ-ACK bits. It is assumed that the maximum number of4·M_(sc) ^(PUSCH) available for HARQ-ACK multiplexing in the PUSCH isnot reached. Different β_(offset) ^(PUSCH)(O) values may be defined fordifferent O values or a few β_(offset) ^(PUSCH)(O) values may be definedfor a set of O values. As O is predetermined through RRC configuration,for example, O=M₁+N₁, β_(offset) ^(PUSCH)(O) can also be predeterminedthrough RRC configuration and β_(offset) ^(PUSCH)(O)=β_(offset)^(PUSCH).

For HARQ-ACK transmission, as a rate of a block code depends on a numberof transmitted HARQ-ACK bits, even if a UE always transmits a maximumnumber of HARQ-ACK bits corresponding to all DL CCs, differences inreception reliability due to differences in a block code rate arereflected by the dependence of β_(offset) ^(HARQ-ACK)(O) on the numberof transmitted HARQ-ACK bits. Unlike the conventional transmission of 1HARQ-ACK bit using repetition coding, the dependence is not linear (thatis, β_(offset) ^(HARQ-ACK)(O)≠O·β_(offset) ^(HARQ-ACK)(1)), as thedifferences in reception reliability due to changes in the coding rateare not linear. For simplicity, different consecutive values for O maymap to the same β_(offset) ^(HARQ-ACK)(O) value.

FIG. 10 is a flowchart illustrating a method of multiplexing differentHARQ-ACK (or RI) payloads (number of information bits) in a PUSCHaccording to an embodiment of the present invention. Specifically, FIG.10 illustrates UE transmitter and Node B receiver functionalities whenmultiplexing different HARQ-ACK payloads in a PUSCH.

Referring to FIG. 10, in step 1010 it is determined whether the numberof HARQ-ACK bits is O>2. If the number of HARQ-ACK bits is not O>2, therespective conventional method (repetition code or simplex code) is usedfor the HARQ-ACK transmission in step 1020. However, if the number ofHARQ-ACK bits is O>2, the HARQ-ACK bits are encoded using the (32, 0) RMblock code in step 1030.

In step 1040, assuming 2 HARQ-ACK bits per modulated symbol (QPSKmodulation), the 32 encoded HARQ-ACK bits (code rate is assumed to bedecreased from its nominal value to accommodate at least 1 repetition of32 coded bits) are divided into 4 quadruplets, which are then placed in4 REs at the 4 DFT-S-OFDM symbols next to the 2 RS symbols in thesub-frame of PUSCH transmission in step 1050. If the conditionsdetermining the number of HARQ-ACK coded symbols indicate additionalrepetitions in step 1060, step 1050 is repeated using additional REs.However, when there are no additional repetitions in step 1060, theprocess for placing the HARQ-ACK bits in the PUSCH is completed in step1070.

After the coding and resource allocation of the HARQ-ACK bits is appliedas described in FIG. 10, apparatuses, such as those described above inrelation to FIG. 2 and FIG. 3, may be used for the transmission andreception of the HARQ-ACK bits. Accordingly, a repetitive descriptionwill not be provided herein.

In accordance with another embodiment of the present invention, a singlePUSCH is selected from among multiple PUSCH during the same sub-frame indifferent UL CCs, for UCI multiplexing. Considering S PUSCHtransmissions without spatial multiplexing with respective MCS of{MCS(1), MCS(2), . . . , MCS(S)}, a first approach considers that UEselects the PUSCH transmission with the largest MCS for UCImultiplexing. Therefore, the UE transmits UCI in UL CC s obtained as

$s = {\arg \; {\max\limits_{{j = 1},\ldots \;,S}{\left\{ {{MCS}(j)} \right\}.}}}$

FIG. 11 illustrates a selection of a single PUSCH from among multiplePUSCH, for UCI multiplexing according to an embodiment of the presentinvention.

Referring to FIG. 11, a reference UE has 3 PUSCH transmissions in asub-frame in 3 respective UL CCs, UL CC1 with QPSK modulation and coderate of r=1/2 1110, UL CC2 with QAM16 modulation and code rate of r=1/21120, and UL CC3 with QAM16 modulation and code rate of r=1/3 1130. Asthe PUSCH transmission in UL CC2 has the largest MCS (largest spectralefficiency), the UE multiplexes UCI in the PUSCH transmission in UL CC21140.

The advantage of selecting only a single PUSCH for UCI multiplexing isthat it provides a single solution regardless of the number of PUSCHtransmissions a UE may have in a single sub-frame and it fits naturallywith the joint coding of all HARQ-ACK bits. By choosing the PUSCHtransmission with the largest MCS, the best reliability for the UCItransmission is achieved, as typically the larger the MCS is, the betterthe link quality is.

Further, choosing a single PUSCH minimizes the impact of error casesthat may occur if the UE misses DCI formats scheduling PUSCHtransmissions. When a Node B and a UE have different understandings ofthe selected PUSCH with the highest MCS, e.g., because the UE missed theDCI format scheduling the PUSCH with the largest MCS, the Node B candetect an absence of such a transmission and can determine that that UCIis included in the first PUSCH transmission with the largest MCS theNode B detects. If multiple PUSCH transmissions have the same, highestMCS, the selected PUSCH transmission may be in a predetermined UL CCsuch as, for example, in the UL CC with the smaller index, as these ULCC indexes are configured to the UE by the Node B.

In accordance with another embodiment of the invention, a UE selectsfor, UCI multiplexing, a PUSCH transmission minimizing a relative amountof data REs that are to be replaced by UCI REs. If the UE has S PUSCHtransmissions in a given sub-frame and the respective number of REsrequired for UCI multiplexing in the PUSCH S is O(s), s=1, . . . , S,then the UE can select for UCI multiplexing the PUSCH minimizing theutility ratio U(s) as shown in Equation (7).

$\begin{matrix}{{{U(s)} = \frac{O(s)}{{N_{symb}^{PUSCH}(s)} \cdot {M_{sc}^{PUSCH}(s)}}},{s = 1},\ldots \;,S} & (7)\end{matrix}$

In Equation (7), M_(sc) ^(PUSCH)(s)=M_(PUSCH)(s)·N_(sc) ^(RB) is anumber of REs assigned to PUSCH transmission s and N_(symb)^(PUSCH)(s)=2·(N_(symb) ^(UL)−1)−N_(SRS)(s) is a number of symbols inPUSCH transmission s available for data transmission (with N_(SRS)(s)=1,if a last sub-frame symbol is used for SRS transmission and N_(SRS)(s)=0otherwise). The benefit of this approach is that the impact of datapuncturing or rate matching, due to UCI multiplexing, on the datareception reliability is minimized. For example, for the same targetBLER, Q_(m) per PUSCH transmission, if a UE has a first PUSCHtransmission over 20 RBs with data code rate of 1/2 and a second PUSCHtransmission over 5 RBs with data code rate of 5/8, the selection of thefirst PUSCH transmission will lead to a lower number of relative REs forUCI multiplexing, although the selection of the second PUSCHtransmission (highest MCS) minimizes the absolute number of REs requiredfor UCI multiplexing. The above may be further conditioned on therequired UCI resources being available (for example, on not reaching themaximum number of REs around the DM RS symbols for the HARQ-ACKtransmission).

In accordance with another embodiment of the invention, a Node B candynamically select the PUSCH for UCI multiplexing by including a 1-bitIE in the DCI format scheduling each PUSCH transmission to indicatewhether or not a UCI should be multiplexed in a respective PUSCH. Whenthe DCI format indicating the PUSCH for UCT multiplexing is missed bythe UE, the UE can revert to choosing the PUSCH with a largest MCS orthe one minimizing the relative UCI overhead. The same applies if thereis no DCI format associated with the PUSCH transmission such as, forexample, for synchronous non-adaptive HARQ retransmissions orsemi-persistent PUSCH transmissions.

FIG. 12 illustrates an inclusion of a “UCI_Multiplexing” TE in a DCIformat scheduling a PUSCH transmission.

Referring to FIG. 12, for the PUSCH transmission 1210, the“UCI_Multiplexing” IE 1220 in the associated DCI format indicateswhether the UE should include its UCI transmission in the PUSCH 1230 ornot 1240.

Instead of explicitly introducing an IE to indicate whether a UE shouldinclude UCI in its PUSCH transmission, an existing TE in the DCI formatscheduling a PUSCH transmission may be used to implicitly perform thatfunctionality. For example, the DCI format is assumed to contain aCyclic Shift Indicator (CSI) E to inform the UE of the Cyclic Shift (CS)to apply to the RS transmission in the PUSCH. A CSI value can bereserved so that when it is signaled in the DCI format, it alsoindicates UCI inclusion in the PUSCH. The values of other existing DCIformat IEs or their combination may also be used for the same purpose.The process in FIG. 12 can again apply (additional illustration isomitted for brevity) with the exception that instead of examining thevalue of a “UCI Multiplexing” IE, the UE examines whether the existingCSI IE has a predetermined value and if so, it includes the UCI in thePUSCH transmission.

In accordance with another embodiment of the invention, in the absenceof any PUSCH transmission, the same UL CC (UL Primary CC) is always usedby the UE to transmit UCI in the PUCCH. The UL Primary CC (UL PCC) canalso be the default UL CC for multiplexing UCI in the PUSCH, when aPUSCH transmission exists in the UL PCC. Otherwise, the UE can revert toother means for choosing the PUSCH (such as using one of the previouslydescribed metrics or using a predetermined order based on the UL CCindexes as previously described). A benefit of using the PUSCHtransmission (when it exists) in the UL PCC to convey UCI occurs if a UEis configured to transmit some UCI (such as CQI/PMI) in the PUCCH whilesome other UCI (such as HARQ-ACK) in the PUSCH. By using transmissionsin the same UL CC (the UL PCC) to convey the UCI in the PUSCH and thePUCCH, the impact of inter-modulation products and of the possiblerequirement for power reduction on the UCI transmission is minimized.

In accordance with an embodiment of the present invention, TxD isapplied to a UCI transmission in a PUSCH.

FIG. 13 illustrates STBC to a HARQ-ACK transmission in a PUSCH accordingto an embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 13, in general, it is assumed that the number ofHARQ-ACK REs is even and in particular, assuming QPSK-type modulationand the (32, O) block code, the number of HARQ-ACK REs is a multiple of16 (=32/2). The first UE antenna transmits the structure 1310 and thesecond UE antenna transmits the structure 1320. The UE applies STBC forthe transmission of the modulated HARQ-ACK symbols 1330 from the firstantenna and applies STBC for the transmission of the modulated HARQ-ACKsymbols 1340 from the second antenna. The UE may or may not apply STBCfor the transmission of the information data 1350.

The RS transmission in each of the two slots from the first antenna,RS11 1360A and RS12 1360B, is orthogonal to the RS transmission in eachof the two slots from the second antenna, RS21 1370A and RS22 1370B. Forexample, RS11 1360A and RS21 1370A may use different CS. RS12 1360B andRS22 1370B may also use different CS.

The UE may determine the CS for RS11 1360A from the CSI IE in the DCIformat or through RRC signaling from the Node B. The CS for RS21 1370Acan be implicitly determined from the CS for RS11 1360A (for example,the CS for RS21 1370A may be the one with the largest distance from theCS for RS11).

The UE apparatus for the transmission from the first antenna is asillustrated in FIG. 2. The apparatus for the transmission from thesecond antenna is also as described in FIG. 2 with an exception that themodulated HARQ-ACK symbols are as in FIG. 13.

The Node B receiver apparatus is as illustrated in FIG. 3 (for theHARQ-ACK bits) with an exception of an STBC reception processing appliesas previously described. Therefore, for a reference Node B receiverantenna, if h_(j) is the channel estimate for the signal transmittedfrom the j^(th) UE antenna, j=1,2, and y_(k) is the signal received inthe k^(th) DFT-S-OFDM symbol, k=1,2, the decision for a pair of HARQ-ACKsymbols [{circumflex over (d)}_(k),{circumflex over (d)}_(k+1)] (priorto decoding) is according to [{circumflex over (d)}_(k),{circumflex over(d)}_(k+1)*]^(T)=H^(H)[y_(k),y_(k+1)*]^(T) where [ ]^(T) denotes thetranspose of a vector and

$H^{H} = {\begin{bmatrix}h_{1}^{*} & {- h_{2}} \\h_{2}^{*} & h_{1}\end{bmatrix}/{\left( {{h_{1}}^{2} + {h_{2}}^{2}} \right).}}$

STBC TxD may or may not apply to other UCI types or to the datainformation. For example, STBC TxD may apply for the RI as for theHARQ-ACK because RI is always transmitted in an even number ofDFT-S-OFDM symbols. However, STBC TxD may not apply for the CQI or forthe data information, which, because of a potential SRS transmission,cannot be generally ensured to exist in an even number of DFT-S-OFDMsymbols.

The number of resources (coded symbols) used for the transmission of aUCI type in the PUSCH may also depend on the use of TxD. For example,because TxD typically improves the reception reliability of therespective information, fewer resources are required to meet therequired reliability for the UCI type. For the determination of the UCIresources in the PUSCH when a particular TxD method, such as STBC, isapplied to the UCI transmission, a different set of β_(offset) ^(PUSCH)values for the corresponding UCI type can be applied. This set ofβ_(offset) ^(PUSCH) values can be either explicitly defined, as for thecase of no TxD, or can be implicitly derived from the set of β_(offset)^(PUSCH) values without TxD. For example, for implicit derivation, theset of β_(offset) ^(PUSCH) values with TxD may be determined by scalingthe set of β_(offset) ^(PUSCH) values without TxD by 2/3. Alternatively,the Node B may simple configure a different β_(offset) ^(PUSCH) valuewhen it configures TxD for the transmission of a UCI type.

While the present invention has been shown and described with referenceto certain embodiments thereof, it will be understood by those skilledin the art that various changes in form and details may be made thereinwithout departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention asdefined by the appended claims and their equivalents.

1. A method for transmitting hybrid automatic repeatrequest-acknowledgement (HARQ-ACK) bits by a user equipment (UE) in acommunication system supporting carrier aggregation, the methodcomprising steps of: receiving a configuration of a plurality of cellsby higher layer signaling; identifying a number of one or more transportblocks for a cell based on the configuration of a plurality of cells;identifying one HARQ-ACK offset; obtaining HARQ-ACK bits for theplurality of cells based on an order of a cell index for each of theplurality of cells and a number of one or more transport blocks for eachof the plurality of cells; identifying a number of coded symbols for theobtained HARQ-ACK bits based on a number of the obtained HARQ-ACK bitsand the one HARQ-ACK offset, wherein the one HARQ-ACK offset correspondsto the number of the obtained HARQ-ACK bits; and transmitting, to a basestation, signals for the concentrated obtained HARQ-ACK bits on onephysical uplink shared channel (PUSCH) of multiple PUSCHs based on thenumber of coded symbols, in case that the multiple PUSCHs exist in aslot, wherein in case that a cell is configured with up to 2 transportblocks, 2 HARQ-ACK bits for the cell are included in the number of theobtained HARQ-ACK bits, and in case that a cell is configured with up to1 transport block, 1 HARQ-ACK bit for the cell is included in the numberof the obtained HARQ-ACK bits, and wherein in case that the number ofthe obtained HARQ-ACK bits is 3, the obtained HARQ-ACK bits are encodedby a (32, O) block code, where the O is the number of the obtainedHARQ-ACK bits.
 2. The method of claim 1, wherein the encoded obtainedHARQ-ACK bits are obtained by repetition based on the number of codedsymbols.
 3. The method of claim 1, wherein information for the oneHARQ-ACK offset is obtained based on higher layer signaling.
 4. Themethod of claim 1, wherein the one HARQ-ACK offset is identified among aplurality of HARQ-ACK offsets according to a range to which the numberof the obtained HARQ-ACK bits belong.
 5. The method of claim 1, whereinthe one PUSCH is associated with a cell having a smallest cell index. 6.A method for receiving hybrid automatic repeat request-acknowledgement(HARQ-ACK) bits by a base station in a communication system supportingcarrier aggregation, the method comprising steps of: transmitting aconfiguration of a plurality of cells by higher layer signaling; andreceiving, from a user equipment (UE), signals for HARQ-ACK bits on onephysical uplink shared channel (PUSCH) of multiple PUSCHs based on anumber of coded symbols, in case that the multiple PUSCHs exist in aslot, wherein the number of coded symbols is identified based on anumber of the HARQ-ACK bits and one HARQ-ACK offset, wherein the oneHARQ-ACK offset corresponds to the number of the HARQ-ACK bits, whereinthe HARQ-ACK bits for the plurality of cells are obtained based on anorder of a cell index for each of the plurality of cells and a number ofone or more transport blocks for each of the plurality of cells, whereinthe number of one of more transport blocks for each of the plurality ofcells is identified based on the configuration of the plurality ofcells, wherein in case that a cell is configured with up to 2 transportblocks, 2 HARQ-ACK bits for the cell are included in the number of theHARQ-ACK bits, and in case that a cell is configured with up to 1transport block, 1 HARQ-ACK bit for the cell is included in the numberof the HARQ-ACK bits, and wherein in case that the number of theHARQ-ACK bits is 3, the HARQ-ACK bits are encoded by a (32, O) blockcode, where the O is the number of the HARQ-ACK bits.
 7. The method ofclaim 6, wherein the encoded HARQ-ACK bits are repeated based on thenumber of coded symbols.
 8. The method of claim 6, wherein informationfor the one HARQ-ACK offset is transmitted based on higher layersignaling.
 9. The method of claim 6, wherein the HARQ-ACK offset is oneof a plurality of HARQ-ACK offsets according to a range to which thenumber of the HARQ-ACK bits belong.
 10. The method of claim 6, whereinthe one PUSCH is associated with a cell having a smallest cell index.11. A user equipment (UE) for transmitting hybrid automatic repeatrequest-acknowledgement (HARQ-ACK) bits in a communication systemsupporting carrier aggregation, the UE comprising: at least onetransceiver; and at least one processor, wherein the at least oneprocessor is configured to: control the at least one transceiver toreceive a configuration of a plurality of cells by higher layersignaling, identify a number of one or more transport blocks for a cellbased on the configuration of a plurality of cells, identify oneHARQ-ACK offset, obtain HARQ-ACK bits for the plurality of cells basedon an order of a cell index for each of the plurality of cells and anumber of one or more transport blocks for each of the plurality ofcells, identify a number of coded symbols for the obtained HARQ-ACK bitsbased on a number of the obtained HARQ-ACK bits and the one HARQ-ACKoffset, wherein the one HARQ-ACK offset corresponds to the number of theobtained HARQ-ACK bits, and control the at least one transceiver totransmit, to a base station, the number of coded symbols for theobtained HARQ-ACK bits on one physical uplink shared channel (PUSCH) ofmultiple PUSCHs, in case that the multiple PUSCHs exist in a slot,wherein in case that a cell is configured with up to 2 transport blocks,2 HARQ-ACK bits for the cell are included in the number of the obtainedHARQ-ACK bits, and in case that a cell is configured with up to 1transport block, 1 HARQ-ACK bit for the cell is included in the numberof the obtained HARQ-ACK bits, and wherein in case that number of theobtained HARQ-ACK bits is 3, the obtained HARQ-ACK bits are encoded by a(32, O) block code, wherein the O is the number of the obtained HARQ-ACKbits.
 12. The UE of claim 11, wherein the encoded obtained HARQ-ACK bitsare obtained by repetition based on the number of coded symbols.
 13. TheUE of claim 11, wherein information for the ONE HARQ-ACK offset isobtained based on higher layer signaling.
 14. The UE of claim 11,wherein the one HARQ-ACK offset is identified among a plurality ofHARQ-ACK offsets according to a range to which the number of theobtained HARQ-ACK bits belong.
 15. The UE of claim 11, wherein the onePUSCH is associated with a cell having a smallest cell index.
 16. A basestation for receiving hybrid automatic repeat request-acknowledgement(HARQ-ACK) bits in a communication system supporting carrieraggregation, the base station comprising: at least one transceiver; andat least one processor, wherein the at least one processor is configuredto: control the at least one transceiver to transmit a configuration ofa plurality of cells by higher layer signaling, and control the at leastone transceiver to receive, from a user equipment (UE), signals forHARQ-ACK bits on one physical uplink shared channel (PUSCH) of multiplePUSCHs based on a number of coded symbols, in case that the multiplePUSCHs exist in a slot, wherein the number of coded symbols isidentified based on a number of the HARQ-ACK bits and one HARQ-ACKoffset, wherein the one HARQ-ACK offset corresponds to the number of theHARQ-ACK bits, wherein the HARQ-ACK bits for the plurality of cells areobtained based on an order of a cell index for each of the plurality ofcells and a number of one or more transport blocks for each of theplurality of cells, wherein the number of one or more transport blocksfor each of the plurality of cells is identified based on theconfiguration of a plurality of cells, wherein in case that a cell isconfigured with up to 2 transport blocks, 2 HARQ-ACK bits for the cellare included in the number of the HARQ-ACK bits, and in case that a cellis configured with up to 1 transport block, 1 HARQ-ACK bit for the cellis included in the number of the HARQ-ACK bits, and wherein in case thatnumber of the HARQ-ACK bits is 3, the HARQ-ACK bits are encoded by a(32, O) block code, where the O is the number of the HARQ-ACK bits. 17.The base station of claim 16, wherein the encoded HARQ-ACK bits arerepeated based on the number of coded symbols.
 18. The base station ofclaim 16, wherein information for the one HARQ-ACK offset is transmittedbased on higher layer signaling.
 19. The base station of claim 16,wherein the HARQ-ACK offset is one of a plurality of HARQ-ACK offsetsaccording to a range to which the number of the HARQ-ACK bits belong.20. The base station of claim 16, wherein the one PUSCH is associatedwith a cell having a smallest cell index.